Dauphin Grille, a bistro near the boardwalk

ARISTIDE ECONOMOPOULOS/THE STAR-LEDGERDauphin Grille, a funky restaurant in the Berkeley at Asbury Park

In the early ’90s, before the days of mesclun greens, Peter O’Connell worked in the Manhattan kitchen of Larry Forgione. Forgione, as you may recall, is the chef who coined the phrase "free-range," and his procurement skills were legendary: He had his ingredients flown in from whatever farms met his standards.

O’Connell particularly remembers a flat of strawberries from those days — tiny, fresh and intense, not the overwatered berries we so know, saturated to increase their size but with a commensurate loss of flavor. That flat was the entire shipment, he says, but those strawberries were remarkable enough to create an indelible memory.

Today, of course, it’s much easier to procure fine farm-fresh ingredients. On Mondays, O’Connell dare not miss his order deadline with Zone 7, the weekly farm-to-restaurant delivery service that brings just-picked produce to a chef’s door. Plus he also has a garden along the patio of Dauphin Grille, and though most harvesting is done during the day, he occasionally steps outside during dinner service, in his chef’s jacket, to pluck some herbs or grab a tomato, becoming a curiosity for the guests.

Dauphin Grille itself is a curiosity, a lovely, funky little restaurant with a billiards table in the bar, flagstone floors, outrageous chandeliers and a quirky, gorgeous logo. It is one of Marilyn Schlossbach’s collection of restaurants (among them the popular Langosta Lounge, Pop’s Garage and Trinity and the Pope); her brother Richard is the manager. The concept is seasonal bistro, with European flair.

In O’Connell’s hand, that translates as simple and fresh but elegant food; it’s like giving a skilled chef a CSA box and a shipment of fresh Nantucket bay scallops. (Which, by the way, taste like candy and have a woefully short season.)

Now, of course, Nantucket bay scallops are over, but O’Connell is having his way with crab, and rather than choose the ubiquitous (and argument-inducing) crab cake, he chooses to showcase it with Jersey corn in a lightly pan-fried crab fritter ($13). It’s simple and straightforward, dressed in a muted red pepper aioli. A crispy pop, and incredibly popular.

The Dauphin coq au vin ($27) is another break from tradition, a Marilyn Schlossbach invention, made with white wine instead of red. This version retains the lustiness of its inspiration (thanks in part to free-range chicken and a homemade stock) while also managing to be less hearty and more summery.

An heirloom tomato salad with burrata ($13) delivered on its freshness promise, despite our worries that from-the-vine Jersey tomatoes are not quite in season. Halibut ($32), delicate and fresh, was demure and sweet as a central-casting bride though punctuated too generously with pepper. Nonetheless, the accompaniments on all dinners — the greens, the Swiss chard — were outstanding, and you realize why Forgione spent so much effort seeking the best.

For dessert, you won’t go wrong if you choose the homemade tart of the day ($9), made with fresh local fruit, although we also were impressed with Dauphin’s version of the ice cream sandwich ($9), made with buttery homemade chocolate chip cookies. Despite a drizzling of caramel, it’s an interpretation that safely skirts the sticky-sweet middlebrow dessert zone.

Expect a leisurely dinner (ours was two hours) and possibly a broken espresso machine. But also expect either live jazz or Etta James on the sound system, and inspired specialty cocktails. You won’t mind slowing to a summer’s pace.